Choices
by ImagineAsian101
Summary: Belly, who brings Taylor with her, returns to the beach to please her mom, even after she's attempted to erase the memories of Conrad and Jeremiah completely. Her goal is to simply visit and not get attached to them. That's not exactly working out. R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Totally random, I swear. I've only read the first book, The Summer I Turned Pretty, so this is kinda random. xD But Susannah has already died so I guess you could call this fiction "Mid-It's Not Summer Without You." Tell me if I should continue or not! :D **

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Belly, Taylor, Conrad, Jeremiah (I wish I did. 3)  
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><p>Thinking about it, the past summers are now a blur.<p>

It took a while, and all of my strength, to get to the point where my mom would say, "Conrad and Jeremiah want to see you, Belly. Or at least answer their phone calls," and I would reply, "Conrad and Jeremiah who?"

My Twilight series books were packed away tightly along with other novels of girls choosing between two guys.

Similarly, Conrad and Jeremiah were stored away in the darkest corners of my mind. Two boys who captured my heart would have to vanish for the best. When I was with one of them, or both, I could feel my sanity depleting. It was a constant battle on my heart, deciding which one of them I'd choose. So I settled on none of them and figured I won.

But I didn't.

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><p>Taylor chatted away about how she missed the "old me" dearly and was going to lock my old-self away in an empty nail polish container for her to keep.<p>

"Oh, look at us! Old besties going to the beach! To see ... you know who," she exclaimed. I swear, her voice must be one of the reasons why car accidents are at an all-time high.

"Belly, if I flirt with them, you won't get mad at me, right?" Taylor pouted flatly.

"Tay, you can have both of them for all I care. I'm only coming here to make my mom happy and to get a tan," I replied, examining my pale skin.

I drove up to the drive way and cut the gas. 'I don't need them. There are plenty of fish in the sea,' I thought to myself.

"We're here! Come on, Belly! I swear, Conrad and Jeremiah are totally rich," Taylor gushed, already outside of the car before my seat-belt was off.

I sighed and aggressively removed the keys. I grabbed Taylor by the wrist, despite her protests of "wanting to make herself look sexier than she already was", and headed for the door.

I saw a glimpse of pure blue eyes behind the window.

My heart stopped.

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><p><strong>Review if you like it, or hate it, and let me know if I should continue with it-! :) <strong>

**Thanks for reading-!  
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	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Two reviews did the trick to let me update! This, and the rest of the story, is going to be made up on the spot (like this chapter). Let's just see where this'll take me and the readers! :D**

**Enjoy!  
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><p>Those vibrant aqua-blue eyes emerged with a face. And on that face was a smile. That smile quickly shifted into a frantic "I got to open the door, now!" grin. But then, the shadow doubled and there were two sets of eyes at the window, racing for the door.<p>

Two brothers. One Belly. And a Taylor. What does that equal? I don't even want to know.

The shadows, that had evolved into living, breathing parts of my past, bursted out the door and without hesitation, threw me up in the air.

"BELLY!" Jeremiah laughed as he helped me back on my feet. "..Look at you! You're ..." He stopped there. Conrad stepped forward and circled me.

"Yep, same old Belly. Looks like you've gotten another freckle," he said as he stared hard at my face. But he lingered for a couple more seconds which probably meant he was looking at more than a freckle. In awkward times like this, Taylor's conceited-ness was a savior.

"AHEM! Heyy, Conrad. Hellooo, Jere. Hope you remember me!" purred Taylor as her attempt at entering the conversation. "You guys have gotten SO tall! You guys should TOTALLY play basketball. You guys would SOOO rock at it!"

I laughed. A real laugh. At something as trivial as killing the awkwardness. My first symptom of coming back to Cousins Beach.

"Yeah, hi, Taylor. Good to see you, too," Jeremiah fakely laughs. Conrad rolls his eyes in her direction.

"Well, you guys can settle in the guestroom. It's tiny, I know, but you guys survived it _last time you were here_," he says. Those five words bring out the pain in his eyes. _Last time I was here, _Susannah was alive. _Last time I was here, _me and Conrad we're the ideal couple. _Last time I was here, _I could confide to Jeremiah about anything.

Things change.

"We both gotta go to work. When we're back and you guys are all comfy, we'll _really _celebrate!" Jeremiah promises with a grin. As quickly as they came out the door, they're rolling out of the driveway in a Ferrari (which they claimed to have bought themselves when Susannah gave it to them as a gift) and are out of sight.

Taylor studies my face carefully. "Oh no, Belly. It's your 'OMG, I JUST HAD A CHANGE OF HEART' look. Guess I can kiss my chance with those two goodbye," she dramatically sighs.

"Taylor, like I said, you can have both. Cheat on each other, marry both, and live two separate lives: one with Jere and one with Conrad, if that's what you want," I reassure her as we enter the house.

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><p>Nothing has changed. Same exact food in the pantry, same toilet paper brand in the bathroom, even the same soap in the kitchen. Conrad and Jeremiah never wash their hands so they've weirdly preserved the scented soap for quite some time. But I'm lying. Everything has changed in its own way. Susannah's laughter is gone. The smell of her perfume from Mr. Fischer, that she eventually decided to use, has disappeared.<p>

Upstairs is relatively normal. Taylor and I drop our bags on the floor and flop down on the bed. To take my mind off of Jere and Con, I've decided that I'm going to be best friends with Taylor again, so I act like the "old me."

"Tay, let's go to the pier. There are tons of hot guys over there!" I say, summoning all of my perkiness. She sits upright immediately.

"NOW, you're talking my language," she grins.

Taylor unpacks every single outfit she brought and lays them out on the bed. "Choose what you want to borrow and let's get ready!"

I select a bright green Aeropostale shirt along with jean shorts. Taylor, on the other hand, chooses a tank top that she's cut just above the belly-button and a mini skirt. We do our nails in bright orange and Taylor curls her hair.

After she applies one more stroke of mascara to her lashes, she declares, "Well, wow. We look amazing, Belly! I can sense that this afternoon is going to be absolutely amazing!"

Taylor whips out her phone from her pocket and positions me and her in front of the mirror.

"This is so going on Facebook. Smile, Belly!"

I force a smile and swallow the pain of everything before this moment.

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><p><strong>AN: A slightly long chapter! ... Okay I lied. It's only about 200 more words than the other one. Oh well! Hope y'all liked it! More to come if those reviews are good! (For those who don't know, reviews are the FOOD of writers on )**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I wouldn't mind a couple more reviews, ya know. Anywho, here's chapter 3. Happy reading!**

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><p>I blow on the steaming hot corn-dog before biting into it. The warmth reminds me of the first time I came to the pier and had one, which was also the first day I met Jeremiah and Conrad.<p>

My head was on Mom's shoulder the whole car ride through. I'd look down every time one of the boys would turn around to the back seat and peek at me.

When we arrived, Mom was gripping my wrist harder than ever, trying to keep me in one place. Susannah and her had brought me, Jeremiah, and Conrad to the pier as a celebration type-thing for the reunion. I was bouncing about, wanting to go to this and that, and was determined I'd try _everything _the pier had to offer! Susannah and my mom would fulfill my wish of trying the Feris Wheel, thinking I'd be calmed down, but that would only fuel my _other _wishes of knocking down bottles with baseballs to earn a stuffed unicorn.

My mom was to the point where if I said one more "MOMMY! I WANNA..." she'd explode. She gratefully accepted Conrad and Jeremiah's offer of watching over me and left to catch up more with Susannah.

"Okay, Is-a-belle. Wow! That's a lot of words!" exclaimed the younger Jeremiah. Conrad noticed me eating Jelly-Belly's. "Hey, share some with us, too! ...Belly."

I wrinkled my nose at his request. "Nuh-uh! You have cooties! And why'd you call me Belly?"

"'Cuz Isabelle. The 'Belle' part is like Belly if you replace the 'e' with a 'y'. Plus, you seem to like Jelly-Belly's," he reasoned.

"...Oh. And fine. Just take the whole bag because I am NOT sharing jelly beans with a boy!" I said defiantly.

Jeremiah handed me a corn dog and placed it in my chubby, tiny hands. My fingers brushed along the sides of the extremely hot treat and I yelped as I watched it fall to the floor.

"OWW! YOU GAVE ME A HOT CORN DOG!" I screamed. They were evil and that was that.

The two looked at eachother and roared in laughter. Finally, Conrad noticed my pouted face and crossed arms. Without thinking, he took my finger and blew on it. The air from his mouth cooled the burn in an instant. I examined my previously red finger.

"That better?" Jeremiah asked, crouching down a bit to meet me at eye-level.

"No."

I ran behind my mom and started yelling about my burning skin and how it was their fault. She and Susannah laughed.

"The age difference isn't very much. Only two years, really. It's amazing how your boys act 10x older than they really are!" my mom pondered.

Susannah stared at me, and then at Jeremiah and Conrad who were having a poke war. "I promise you. Your Belly is going to end up with one of my boys," she said, matter-of-factly. Susannah was completely serious.

"I'll make sure of it before I die," she added.

As I returned back from my flashback, I whispered, "Sorry to disappoint you Aunt Susannah."

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><p>Taylor and I sat on the bench beside the corn dog stand.<p>

"Oooh, that guy's hot. 'Scuse me for a sec," Taylor smiled as she walked up to a blonde guy with green eyes and a buzz-cut.

"Hey! I'm Taylor Jewel. I think I've seen you before!"

I watched as she introduced herself and within 5 minutes, got his number.

"There she is!"

I turned around to see Jeremiah and Conrad. "We checked the house. You two weren't there. Figured you'd be here. We know you well enough," Conrad shrugged.

Jeremiah glanced at Taylor, who was already leaning in for a kiss from that guy, and suggested that we do something while she was "busy."

"Conrad! Conrad! Over here!" we heard a voice say.

A petite girl, probably Asian, ran up to him. Conrad embraced her.

"Forget to tell ya, Belly. This is Kylie, my girlfriend.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys! I read ALL of them. And to this "ANONYMOUSs" person, reveal yourself, girl! Or guy! I wanna know who to thank! **

**Happy reading!  
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><p>Kylie was cute. Not pretty, not sexy, not gorgeous, just cute. The "cute" you think of when you see a bunny. The "cute" that fools you and then back-stabs you later on.<p>

She stuck her hand out. "Hi, Belly! You're Conrad's friend, right? Almost like brother and sister is what he told me!"

_'What the hell, Conrad?' _is all I think to myself. I fake a smile and shake her hand, squeezing it extra tight.

"Nice to meet you!" I say. That's all I say, actually. Perky Kylie doesn't deserve a "Wow! I didn't know Conrad had a girlfriend!"

Taylor, fanning herself with the paper that has that one guy's number on it, strides over to us. At the sight of Kylie, though, she stops dead in her tracks.

"...OHMIGOD. YOU'RE KYLIE CONNORS!" Taylor screams, trying her hardest to maintain her composure. "BELLY! THAT'S KYLIE CONNORS!"

"I noticed," I reply. "She's Conrad's girlfriend," I say flatly. Taylor stares at Conrad before patting him on the back.

"Nice going, Con. You scored yourself KYLIE CONNORS! A SUPER-MODEL. Whoever thought it'd be you to win the girl of all girls ... Well, SECOND place to the girl of all girls," she chuckles, pointing to herself during that last part.

Kylie laughs and tosses her hair over her shoulder. "Aww, it feels wonderful being admired like this." Before I can even ask about this model thing, Taylor has whisked her away to talk about who knows what.

I stare at Conrad. A blink is all I give to him before walking away.

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><p>My feet rest on the coffee table and the rest of my body is slouched over a sofa. I hear my brother, Steven, who has left for college, speaking in my head. I could use him right now. He was actually a decent brother. His sarcastic comments that were a pain in the ass were his way of showing his love. I remember the last time I actually hung out with him.<p>

Me and Steven were going grocery shopping. That was a one-way ticket to hell.

Within 3 minutes of our trip, we were fighting over brands of cereal and what 25% off meant. When I kept yelling at him that 25% didn't mean you subtract $25 from the current price, he simply picked me up and threw me into a shopping cart. As he pushed it in the direction of the produce section, he didn't noticed that I wrapped the bottom of his shirt to a tiny stub in the cart. If I was heading for bananas and apples, Steven was going down with me.

I stumbled into a box of oranges after the crash and Steven found himself on top of an old lady who had been in the midst of choosing ripe bananas. Weirdly enough, we started laughing right there. Some people decided to report that there was a mess in the produce section and two teens were cracking up at the scene.

Steven and I are banned from the store permanently. Honestly, I don't give damn.

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><p>"I'm sorry."<p>

To my left was Jeremiah sitting on the couch, his head throbbing with guilt.

"For what?"

"For everything. For killing our awesome bond we had. For making your visit here really crappy. And mostly, for last time you were here ... when I flirted and did just about everything a guy can do for a girl when I new you belonged to Conrad."

This surprises me. A lot. But not as much as what I do in return.

I kiss him.

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><p><strong>AN: Ooooh, plot twist. xD Shall restate this again guys: I totally make this up on the spot. I open a Word Document and type. And here's what you get! Anyways, keep on reviewing guys! Your feedback makes me smile, lol.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I'm just gonna thank you guys, right here, right now! Thank you, LimeGreenGirl, ANONYMOUSs (who is a girl, lol), clacame, CHOICESisawesome (thank you for such a clever little username), and ashley! Y'all rock! Despite the fact that LimeGreenGirl is the only registered user, I still love you guys! **

**Read on! (this one is wayyy longer, haha.)  
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><p>Jeremiah's soft lips against mine automatically bring back every memory from the summers before. The ones I so desperately wanted to hide away and forget are making their return, swimming around in a garbled mess called my head.<p>

He returns to his position on the couch and smiles at me. "So... I'm forgiven?"

I throw a pillow at him. "Of course not. You still owe me a lot more than that," I tease.

"Same old Belly. Seems you're still following that motto of yours: kiss and then injure the same person," Jeremiah retorts. I scoot closer beside him and pretend to examine my nails.

"Conrad's dating a super model?" I ask, as casually as possible. Jeremiah sighs in reply.

"Yeah, for a month now. But if you're unhappy about it, you can work your magic and have him eating out of your hand again."

I lay my head on his shoulder. "And why exactly would I want a royal pain-in-the-ass eating from my hand? I don't like him anymore, Jere. Can't you tell?"

He stays quiet and ruffles my hair.

"I'd love to believe that," I hear him mumble.

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><p>Taylor and I get ready for bed. She comes out of the bathroom with a toothbrush in her mouth and Colgate toothpaste surrounding it.<p>

"Kyleehh Cnnnrs is rehlly a fablous persuhn, Bells," she states through her slurred speech.

"Ugh, Taylor, get that toothbrush out of your mouth and speak properly," I laugh. She reluctantly removes it and repeats herself.

"I saaaaaid, Kylie Connors is really a fabulous person, Bells! Conrad and her actually make such an adorable couple!"

Taylor is making it really hard to be best friends with her again. I remember the day we cemented our best friend-ness. We were already close, but this one incident in the 4th grade made us inseparable.

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><p>Allie Menard had spilled milk on me during lunch. People were laughing and pointing, and my fiery self, for once, couldn't insult and come up with enough comebacks for an entire cafeteria. Taylor came to my rescue.<p>

I was in awe of her as she cussed out every single person. Her excessive use of "bitch" made me admire her even more. No one said the word "hell," let alone "bitch" and "ass." This came back to bite her.

During her walk to the principal's office, Taylor's head was still held high. I knew I had to do something in return for my friend.

I called the nearest teacher I could find, a bitch. Now we both sat in the principal's office. We pinky promised we would never leave eachothers' sides while we waited to call our parents.

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><p>I wish she kept that brush in her mouth. I don't know why I care so much, because in my head, I don't care about anything at all. I don't care that Conrad has a model girlfriend. I don't care that Taylor is hanging around with her. I don't care that my life is a bowl of spaghetti that is in desperate need of some untangling.<p>

I wash out all these "I don't care's" during my midnight swim.

It's a tradition for me, really. I swim at night and everything goes away. Susannah used to swim with me way before, and later, she just watched me. Now she does neither.

I do lap after lap, back-and-forth. The tiny splashes of water grab at me and try to pull me down, but I don't stop. I keep on going. Finally, I simply float in the middle of the pool.

"You'll murder your hair with all this chlorine."

I turn around and see Conrad sitting on one of the pool benches.

"I have shampoo to resurrect it."

"Do you have any soap to resurrect the things that have happened before?"

"No. Why would I want to relive that?"

"Because you were happy. _We_ were happy."

"Maybe you were, but I wasn't. I was clueless at the time. Now I see that we're not right for each other. But maybe you and Kylie are."

"Is little Belly jealous?"

"Shut up, Conrad."

"So you _do _have feelings for me still."

"I never loved you. And I never will."

Jeremiah walks in about this time. He doesn't speak, though. He simply looks at us and takes the other bench. Conrad continues with our chat/debate/fight/confession.

"Then why are you so pissed at me for dating Kylie? Damn it, Belly, the world doesn't revolve around you!"

"You're one to talk! All you care about is yourself! Well here's another fact about _you_! You're the biggest pain in the ass I've ever met!" I scream at him, slightly surprised at the venom in my voice.

**-SPLASH!-**

Conrad tumbles into the pool. I barely dodge his body and the massive mini-waves that follow. Jeremiah is staring down at us. He pushed Conrad.

"Jere-" I say before being cut off.

"You guys are acting like babies. Literally. Stop arguing. This could be the last summer we're all together."

I stare at Conrad and he glances at me.

"Fine... I'm sorry...You're a pain in the ass, but not the biggest one," I sigh.

"I'm sorry for saying you like me when you obviously _love _me," he replies. I let this slide even though I'd love to clobber him.

"Come on, Jere! Jump in! Please?" I beg with my puppy dog eyes.

"Nah, I'll pass. I'll just watch you guys-"

Conrad grabs him by the ankle and literally pulls him into the water. We splash around like hyper 7 year olds on steroids, insulting eachother and swimming away when each one of us get near.

I'd love to pause this moment. Just for a bit.

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><p><strong>AN: The ending was dull, wasn't it? -sniffle- Anyways, will update when a couple reviews come in! I'm serious: I have no clue who Belly will end up with so please leave your opinions! Team Conrad or Team Jeremiah! And also tell me what YOU would like to see!**

**Love ya!  
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	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Lalala, UPDATE-! :D Here you go! **

**Oh, and thank you for the review, teamconnie. It made me smile. :)  
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><p>Jeremiah has to work the full-day shift at his job, Taylor's out with Kylie, again, so now only me and Conrad remain. I find him downstairs watching football and chomping Dorito's by the dozen.<p>

"You'll get fatter than you already are," I smirk in disgust as I take a seat beside him.

"Well, judging by all the girls who've been swooning around me, I'd say I'm not fat at all. _You _on the other hand-"

I slap the Dorito's bag out of his hands and the rest of the words out of his mouth.

"Whoaa, Bells. Be nice to your 'ol Conrad. If you want me out of the house, I'll call Kylie then and take her on a date or something," he laughs.

"Whatever. I'll leave you to your fattening-process. I'm heading out to the beach. Don't expect me back before 7," I say as I shove the chips bag back into his hands.

I'm determined to make my next goal come true:

Make Conrad sorry he ever lost me.

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><p>I put my hair up in a ponytail, place my sunglasses on, and roam around the beach, listening to "Forget You" by Cee-Lo Green on my iPod. That song really fits my current situation.<p>

"Hey! Wait up!"

I feel a tap on my shoulder and turn around.

"Is this yours? I found it on the seat of the bench you were just sitting on."

The voice belongs to a guy about my age. In his hand is a bracelet with numerous, multicolored smiley faces on it.

"Nope, sorry!" I reply sympathetically.

"Yeah, I know it's not. I just needed an excuse to talk to you," he grins. I can see him quite well when I take off my sun-glasses. He's actually kind of cute and simple-looking. No exaggerated muscles bursting out of his shirt or fancy hairstyles, just a teenager in a polo, shorts, and Nike's.

"Haha, you look sort of familiar," I say as I sort through my memories, determining which one he belongs to.

"Yeah, I've seen you before, too. I handed you a corn-dog at the pier. That's where I work," he smiles. "I'm Daymond. And you are...?"

"Belly. It's short for Isabelle," I explain.

"Oh, cool. Belly... I've never heard that as a nickname for Isabelle. Interesting ... well, you might as well keep the bracelet. It looks good on you," Daymond compliments me as he takes my wrist and slips it on.

"Uh, you wanna go get something to eat?" I stutter, not used to this much attention from a guy I just met minutes before. He nods.

I learn a lot about Daymond in the past hour and a half. He's a champion surfer in town for a competition taking place at the beach. It feels good not worrying about Conrad or Jere. Daymond and I walk along the dock that leads out to the crystal blue ocean. Daymond offers to get me a Coke and leaves to find the nearest concessions stand. I take a seat on the edge of the board-walk and stick my legs in the water, splashing them around.

Suddenly, I feel something grasp my ankle in the water and pull me down.

I scream, but only bubbles escape my mouth. My arms flail around in the water, fighting back to the surface, but it's no use. My brain screams oxygen, as do my lungs. I'm becoming light-headed.

I capture one last glance of light streaming through the ocean water and see Kylie grinning, before I'm consumed by darkness.

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><p><strong>AN: Ohmygosh, I don't even know what I just wrote. Review, though, and we'll all find out. ;) CLIFF-HANGER!  
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	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Had some serious writer's block. xD Anywho, enjoy!**

**P.S: Nice idea, Nat! You should write a fic about that, haha. I'd suck at making your idea very detailed and I'd disappoint you, lol. Thank you!  
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><p>"BELLY! DAMMIT, BREATHE!"<p>

A blurry Conrad appears in front of me. I summon all my strength and some-what sit up, sputtering out sea water from my lungs. When my world comes into clarity, I'm in the middle of a surrounding crowd, all with relief painted on their faces.

Jeremiah is there, too, gripping me by the shoulders and holding me close. His eyes are flooded with worry as he speaks.

"...Belly. You- You scared the hell out of me. I get a phone call from Conrad saying you've _nearly drowned _and I'm probably in jeopardy of getting fired because I simply left my shift."

"I thought it was common knowledge, but you can't breathe under water," Conrad adds, kneeling beside me.

When we get back to the house, they sit me down on the couch.

"So, what happened?" asks Jere, straight forward.

"I ... was sitting on the edge of the dock while this guy I met was getting me a Coke, and something grabbed my ankle. It pulled me under and it wouldn't let go-"

"BELLY! OHMIGOD, I THOUGHT YOU DIED!" screams Taylor as she bursts through the door.

Kylie follows with a look of worry on her face. I can't put my finger on it, but her expression seems fake. That's when I remember something. Before I blacked out, I saw Kylie's smiling face. I dismiss the thought for later.

After Taylor hugs me tightly to the point of suffocation, her and Kylie leave to grab pizza for all of us and Conrad goes to call my mom about everything.

"Your turn to explain, Jere. What happened after I went under?" I question him, sitting criss-crossed on the couch.

"Well, Conrad says he went to the beach, because he knew you'd be there, and wanted to apologize to you for being an ass. He saw you sitting on the edge of the dock, but also saw you go under suddenly. He figured you tumbled into the water, but when you didn't come back up, he dived right in and found you floating there, unconscious. Conrad played Superman and rescued you from near-death. He called me over and I gave you CPR. The end," Jeremiah says, sitting back on the couch casually when he's through.

"Well, wow. I'm gonna get fresh air. Call me when Tay and Kylie are back with pizza," I holler as a leave.

I stare at the sunset from the view of the beach house, when I see two figures kissing in the sun.

It's Kylie and Daymond.

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><p><strong>AN: I'm sorry VampireDiaries14! Kylie, in my story, is a crazy one. xD Anywho, I hope you guys liked this!  
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	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thanks VampireDiaries14 for the ideas! :D I'm definitely using them. (:  
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><p>My mind is screaming, my mouth is silent. I'm so fucking confused.<p>

Kylie is Conrad's girl. Daymond is ... Kylie's boy, too? And seeing her before I almost drowned adds confusion to the mix. I half pray that Conrad can see this messed up scene and break up with her, and also half hope that he doesn't. It would tear him a part. I walk along the edge of the beach until I'm near their spot. Kylie begins to whisper. I figure it's because her jaw is too sore from kissing to actually talk.

"Damn it, Daymie. Am I a bitch for doing this?" she sighs.

"No, babe. You're beautiful. Now restate that little plan of yours for me," coos Daymond.

"It's not that confusing, hun. It's only six words: _I want Belly and Conrad dead._"

My eyes widen.

"Well, almost drowning that Isabel person didn't work. Why can't you just let them live and stay with me? My family loves you, Kylie!"

"Because I will never forgive Conrad for what he did to me! Killing Belly will break his heart. Literally. And then you'll find some way to kill him off!"

"What did Conrad do?" asks Daymond, furrowing his eyebrows.

Yeah. What _did _Conrad do? I wonder. Kylie looks my way and I barely dodge her glance. I quickly tiptoe away as Kylie tells Daymond that she'll explain later.

I run into Conrad as I head back to the beach house.

"Hey, your mom says she's happy you're alive and ... that's about it," he says.

"KYLIE'S CHEATING ON YOU!" I blurt suddenly. I mentally slap myself. I guess the sea-water is still in my brain. He looks surprised for a minute but his expression later shifts into an eye-roll.

"Belly-"

"Con, I know you think I'm being a child, but I'm dead serious. S-She's a bitch! I saw Kylie before I went under and guess what: she's the one who pulled my ankle into the water and left me to drown. Kylie said she wants me, and you, dead. But first, she's after me. Kylie said that killing me would break your heart or something."

Conrad scoffs. "Is little Belly jealous? And no, it wouldn't break my heart. I don't love you anymore, okay? I was just about to tell you that-"

"You broke up with me?"

We both turn to see Kylie, hands on her hips, eyes narrow.

"I ditch your pathetic friend Taylor to hang with my boyfriend and I see you spying on me, Belly." Kylie emphasizes the word 'boyfriend' as she glares at Conrad.

**-FLASHBACK-**

"What?"

"I'm sorry, Kylie. I'm ... in love with Belly still. It's just that seeing her again brought everything back. I hope you understand."

"Conrad, you don't understand what you're losing, do you? I work my butt off as a model, always jetting off to places, and make a lot of money. I could make us rich! I could even get you a job in the modeling business! Your pretty face is perfect! for the camera!"

"Thanks, but no thanks."

"Connie, don't! Give me a chance! I'll be a better girlfriend than Belly ever was!"

"Kylie, no. We're over."

Conrad left his ex in the sand, not turning back. Kylie was cool, but not Belly. At that moment, he saw Belly at the dock, smiling with some guy. As he began to approach the two, he saw the dude leave. Belly had been kicking the water, splashing some in her face.

"God, she's beautiful. Who the hell was this guy?" Conrad thought. Just then, he saw Belly go under the waves. She was being clumsy, as usual, he said to himself. As he counted the seconds, she didn't come up.

And then he was running.

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><p><strong>AN: Yeah, this chapter is confusing and sucky. I promise, it'll get better! I'm sorting some ideas out. (:  
><strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Ohmygoodness, I read "It's Not Summer Without You" and "We'll Always Have Summer" on my Kindle yesterday. My reading life is complete. (:  
><strong>

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><p><strong>-CONTINUATION OF FLASHBACK FROM CONRAD'S POINT OF VIEW-<strong>

My feet were on slow-motion mode. Or they felt like it. I could feel Belly slipping away. I dove in, flailing my arms in the waves. Finally, FINALLY, I grasped her limp arm and brought her to the surface.

I came to the beach, mainly to apologize to Belly for being my lazy-ass self. Breaking up with Kylie was unplanned.

A crowd gathered around Belly. Amazingly, my cheap phone still worked even though it was soaked. Thank god Jeremiah was on speed-dial and picked up. I counted to seven and there was my brother, giving her CPR.

I think he enjoyed it.

"BELLY! DAMMIT, BREATHE!" I screamed. Her eyes fluttered open, along with a mouth-full of water.

**-END FLASHBACK AND CONRAD'S POINT OF VIEW-**

"Kylie... what the hell?" Conrad blinks.

"You dated a whack-job. Nice one," I grin. "And you're calling Taylor pathetic? Look in the mirror, dear," I smirk. I'm surprised at how loosely I'm handling a situation where I'm wanted dead. This is probably how Jeremiah would act.

"Shut up, Isabel. You're the one who tortured poor Conrad. I came to his rescue. Hell, when I found him, he was messed up. He kept crying about how you were the only one for him and you shut him down. Well actually, you shut him and Jeremiah down! And especially at the time where the two needed you most. Ya know, when that Susannah person died?"

I cringe at the name of Susannah, also known as 'Beck' to my mom. She was my second mother. I was certainly not going to accept some bitch calling my mom a "Susannah person."

"Kylie. Get the hell out of our beach house," says Conrad. I smile when he says "our" beach house. "I dumped you for a reason. And you were too busy fucking with Daymond so I didn't think you'd care."

Kylie turns before she finally leaves the house. "Okay, I exaggerated. The last thing I need is two dead bodies anyways. But Conrad, you'll regret breaking up with me. And Belly, ... " She stares at me, venom in her eyes.

Finally, she's gone.

Jeremiah walks in with pizza. "What did I miss?" he asks as he swallows a bite.

"Well, Kylie isn't exactly happy with Conrad dumping her," I say as a sad attempt at a joke.

"You dumped Kylie? Congrats, bro! I never liked her," Jeremiah laughs. "I'll go get plates and stuff. We're going to eat this amazing pizza properly!"

As soon as Jere is gone, I call out Conrad's name.

"Yeah?" he asks.

"What did, um, Kylie mean when she said that you said I was the only one for you?" I stutter. I don't even know why I asked the question, I suppose it slipped out.

"She was lying, Belly. I never said that. And don't worry, it's not true," Conrad says casually. I feel ... sad. Almost disappointed. And I hate it.

I mean, I don't love him. Or Jeremiah. I'm over both of them. Right?

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><p><strong>AN: Review-! :D  
><strong>


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